The Effects of Implicit Color Preference and Implicit Racial Preference on Implicit Attitude Towards the Ad

Ioannis Kareklas, University of Connecticut, USARobin Coulter, University of Connecticut, USA

This paper develops a theoretical framework which examines the impact of participants’ implicit color preference (ICP) for the color white versus the color black, and their implicit racial preference (IRP) for White versus Black racial stimuli, on reactions to advertisements featuring White (vs. Black) spokespersons. We hypothesize that participants, regardless of race, will exhibit an implicit preference for the color white, an implicit racial preference for White racial stimuli, and an implicit preference for advertisements featuring White spokespersons. We conjecture that implicit racial preference will partially mediate the effect of implicit color preference on implicit attitude towards the ad (IAad).